Home / 'Capacity review’ of State Department of Education aims to improve meeting needs of Oklahoma students

'Capacity review’ of State Department of Education aims to improve meeting needs of Oklahoma students

Posted by SDEmedia on Tue, 02/10/2015 - 1:41pm

OKLAHOMA CITY (Feb. 10, 2015) — As part of a comprehensive effort by State Superintendent of Public Instruction Joy Hofmeister to strengthen the work and mission of the Oklahoma State Department of Education (OSDE), education management experts are in Oklahoma City today and tomorrow for a “capacity review” of the agency.

The review is part of a process that began in November. At that time, then-Superintendent-elect Hofmeister distributed a survey statewide seeking feedback on the agency. That survey elicited more than 10,300 respondents, the majority of which were from teachers.

A four-person review team from U.S. Education Delivery Institute (EDI) is facilitating focus groups of OSDE leadership and staff, as well as a wide range of public- and private-sector stakeholders in Oklahoma’s public education system. Preliminary findings of the study will be presented Wednesday to the superintendent’s transition team.

“The capacity review is an important step forward in closing existing gaps to meet the educational needs of Oklahoma students,” said Hofmeister. “I am grateful for the perspective and feedback of so many Oklahoma stakeholder groups assisting us in this review.”

EDI has conducted similar reviews for education departments in several states, including Colorado, Iowa, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, Tennessee and Texas.

The review includes representatives from various stakeholder groups, including: